Massachusetts property deeds
Deed rules are state law, and Massachusetts's differ from its neighbours in ways that decide whether your document records or comes back. Here is the whole picture: which deeds exist here, how they have to be signed, what the recorder wants on the page, and what it costs.
- Recording office
- Registry of Deeds
- Witnesses
- Notary only
- Transfer tax
- $4.56 per $1
- First-page margin
- 3″ top
- Recording fee
- ~$155 first page
- E-recording
- Generally available
Deeds Massachusetts recognizes
| Deed | What it does | Available? |
|---|---|---|
| Quitclaim deed | Transfers whatever interest you have in a property, with no promises about the title. | Yes |
| General warranty deed | Transfers ownership with the strongest title guarantees the law allows. | Yes |
| Special warranty deed | Transfers ownership, but only guarantees the title for the period you owned it. | Yes |
| Transfer-on-death deed | Names who inherits your property, skips probate, and changes nothing while you're alive. | No |
| Lady bird deed | An enhanced life estate deed: you keep total control for life, and the property passes automatically at death. | No |
| Life estate deed | You keep the right to live in the property for life; named remaindermen own it after you. | Yes, less common |
| Gift deed | Transfers property to someone as an outright gift, for no payment. | Yes, less common |
Massachusetts does not recognize transfer-on-death deeds and lady bird deeds. Recording one here wouldn't achieve what you want.
How a deed has to be signed in Massachusetts
Massachusetts requires the grantor's signature to be acknowledged before a notary public. No witnesses are required.
| Requirement | Rule |
|---|---|
| Notarization | Required for every signature |
| Witnesses | None |
| Preparer statement | Customary, not required |
| Grantee address on the deed | Required |
| Prior deed reference | Optional |
| Spousal joinder | Not generally required |
Massachusetts document formatting rules
Registries of deeds in Massachusetts expect 8.5 × 11 inch paper with a 3-inch top margin on the first page and 1-inch margins elsewhere. Type must be at least 10 point. That top margin is the recorder's stamp area. Writing into it is the most common formatting rejection there is.
Massachusetts transfer tax and recording fees
Massachusetts charges Deeds excise tax at $4.56 per $1,000 of consideration ($2.28 per $500). Customarily paid by the grantor. Barnstable County adds a county surcharge on top of the state rate.
Common exemptions: transfers where consideration is $100 or less, transfers between spouses, and gifts with no consideration.
Recording fees run about $155 for the first page. Massachusetts charges a flat statutory fee of $155 for a deed, regardless of page count.
How to hold title in Massachusetts
- Sole ownership. One person owns everything.
- Tenancy in common. Separate, divisible shares with no survivorship. A deceased owner's share goes to their heirs.
- Joint tenancy with right of survivorship. Equal shares; the survivor takes the whole property automatically.
- Tenancy by the entirety. Married couples only, with automatic survivorship and, in most states that allow it, protection from one spouse's creditors.
What the law presumes for married couples
A conveyance to a married couple creates a tenancy by the entirety unless the deed says otherwise (Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 184, § 7).
Where to record a deed in Massachusetts
Deeds are recorded with the Registry of Deeds in the county where the property is located. Massachusetts has 21 counties. Most offices accept e-recording through a submitting service, which is usually same-day.
Middlesex South · Worcester · Suffolk · Norfolk · Plymouth · Essex South · Hampden · Middlesex North · Essex North · Bristol North · Barnstable. all Massachusetts recording offices
Why deeds get rejected in Massachusetts
- In Massachusetts, the QUITCLAIM deed, not the warranty deed, is the standard instrument for an ordinary sale. A Massachusetts quitclaim carries limited covenants and is roughly equivalent to a special warranty deed elsewhere. This surprises people moving from other states.
- Massachusetts charges a flat $155 recording fee for a deed no matter how many pages.
- Registry districts do not always match county lines. Several counties have both a northern and a southern district. Record in the district that covers the town.
- Massachusetts runs a Land Court registered-land system alongside recorded land. Check your prior deed to see which applies.
- Massachusetts does not recognize transfer-on-death deeds.
From $39. Every Massachusetts rule above is applied automatically, and you read the finished document before you pay.
Common questions
You sign a deed, have it notarized, and record it with the Registry of Deeds in the county where the property sits. Which deed depends on what you're doing: a quitclaim for family transfers and adding or removing a name, a warranty deed for a sale, and a living trust for probate avoidance.
No. Massachusetts does not require an attorney to prepare or record a deed. Use one when ownership is disputed, when the owner has died and the estate has not been probated, when the estate is large enough to owe tax, or when Medicaid planning is involved.
About $155 for the first page. Massachusetts also charges deeds excise tax at $4.56 per $1,000 of consideration ($2.28 per $500).
No. Massachusetts is not among the 32 states plus DC that authorise a transfer-on-death deed. The usual alternatives here are a revocable living trust or survivorship titling.
Keep reading
- Massachusetts quitclaim deedTransfers whatever interest you have in a property, with no promises about the title.
- Massachusetts general warranty deedTransfers ownership with the strongest title guarantees the law allows.
- Massachusetts special warranty deedTransfers ownership, but only guarantees the title for the period you owned it.
- Massachusetts life estate deedYou keep the right to live in the property for life; named remaindermen own it after you.
- Massachusetts recording officesWhere to file in each county, with fees and contact details.
- Compare all 51 jurisdictionsWitness rules, transfer taxes, and recording fees side by side.
Deedly is not a law firm
We provide self-help software and state-specific statutory forms; you make your own decisions about your property. Using Deedly does not create an attorney-client relationship, and nothing here is legal advice. If your situation is complex or contested, talk to a licensed attorney in your state.